The present invention relates broadly to shelf units for storing and dispensing individual cans or bottles of beverages. More particularly, the present invention comprises an improved gravity-feed rack adapted to be stored within a refrigerator for containing and sequentially dispensing a plurality of beverage containers.
For homeowners it can be difficult and cumbersome to store beer bottles in the refrigerator in neat and orderly rows. Haphazard storage results in inefficient use of the refrigerator's volume. It has also proven desirable and profitable to small store owners to display for sale individual servings of beverages such as carbonated soft drinks, fruit juices, beer, or the like typically contained in aluminum cans or glass bottles in refrigerated compartments for immediate consumption by a purchaser. However, it can difficult to provide sufficient refrigerator shelf space to accommodate an adequate volume of the many brands and varieties of drinks available in today's market. Hence, numerous space-saving storage devices have been proposed in the past for maximizing use of limited refrigerator shelf space.
It has previously been known to provide refrigerator bins or racks for vertically stacking a plurality of beverage cans to be dispensed. A wide variety of gravity-feed can dispensers has been proposed in the prior art. For example, early gravity-feed can dispenser systems are illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 2,888,145, issued to Knots et al. on May 26, 1959 and, U.S. Pat. No. 3,393,808 issued July 23, 1968 to Chirchill.
Broadly speaking, such prior art dispensers typically comprise an upright housing adapted to support a plurality of vertically stacked, downwardly inclined shelves so arranged that a container inserted in the top-most shelf will be pulled down by gravity along a serpentine path between successive shelves and come to rest in the lowest available space. Most of the prior art dispensers known to me also include some form of front tray or cradle to facilitate display and convenient selection of the beverage can from the front end of the rack.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,306,688, issued Feb. 28, 1967 to Domenico employs a unitary spiraling channel which slows the downward feed of beverage cans. The bin dispenser proposed by Umsted, U.S. Pat. No. 2,195,162 issued Dec. 1, 1959 employs a plurality of inclined rack components adapted to be vertically stacked to form a track for guiding canned beverages downwardly through the dispenser. A drop slot defined in the lowermost end of each rack component guides the beverage can smoothly onto the shelf below. The drop slot maintains the can in horizontal position with both ends roughly parallel to the rack side walls, thus preventing sideways deflection which would result in jamming.
A number of variations and improvements on the basic design of gravity-feed can dispensers has been proposed in the prior art. Deffner et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,105,126, issued Aug.8, 1978, propose an improved, modular dispensing rack comprising a plurality of identical, interchangeable shelf components. The components may be quickly and conveniently coupled together to create vertical racks of selective desired sizes. The individual shelves are slightly downwardly inclined to assist gravity-feed, and each comprises integral side rails of different heights adapted to accommodate varying sizes of cans without jamming. Eckert, U.S. Pat. No. 4,228,903, issued Oct. 21, 1980 provides similar individual dispensing modules which may be vertically stacked as well as connected side-by-side to increase storage capacity.
However, neither of the last-mentioned systems provides for sequential downward feed of beverage cans from one shelf to another into a final dispensing tray. Thus, each shelf must be separately loaded for dispensing and each will hold only a very limited number of cans at a given time. Of less relevance to the present invention are certain vending machine systems which employ broad principles of gravity-feed technology, such as those disclosed by Gross, U.S. Pat. No. 3,416,706 issued Dec. 17, 1968, and Baxendale, U.S. Pat. No. 3,795,345 issued Mar. 5, 1974.
Use of prior art gravity-feed dispensers known to me has several notable disadvantages. A major disadvantage is that such dispensers are not suited for use with the individual glass bottles popularized by the beverage companies in recent years. When laid horizontally in a typical gravity-feed rack, the bottles do not roll evenly, since the greater volume of beverage is concentrated in the lower portion of the bottle, and since the narrow-diameter neck portion is not restrained by the shelf or guide rail. Hence, the bottle would tend to deflect sideways on the inclined shelf. Additionally, a bottle passing through a drop slot such as in Eckert '903 device would more often than not fall bottom first and land upright rather than horizontally on the shelf below, resulting in undesired jamming. No teaching is found in the prior art for effectively accommodating both glass bottles and cans. Hence it would be desirable to provide a gravity-feed dispenser in which the shelf components may be so positioned to accommodate either canned or bottled beverages.
Inadequate end trays are another disadvantage common in prior art dispensers. In an effort to make the beverages more conveniently accessible to the purchaser, prior art designers have failed to provide adequate means for properly restraining the cans in the display position. Thus cans loaded in the top may fall and push the lowermost cans forward out of the rack, so that they fall out into the display case or onto the floor. This may result in costly loss of product or injury to the perspective purchaser. Thus, it is desired to provide a gravity-feed beverage dispenser which employs a more secure, easily accessible display tray.
A further shortcoming of prior art dispenser racks known to me is inadequate cushioning to prevent damage to the beverage container resulting from impact experienced during feeding. Aluminum cans may be dented and bent; glass containers may be chipped or broken and cause serious injury to the consumer. Moreover, without adequate cushioning or restraint, the impact may unduly agitate the contents, resulting in explosion or inconvenient spraying of the purchaser upon opening. Hence, improved cushioning means for a gravity-feed beverage dispenser would be desirable.
Finally, it will be appreciated that may of the referenced prior art dispensers are not well-suited for use in the home environment, where refrigerator storage space is also limited. Hence, it would be desirable to provide a dispenser which can be readily adapted for home use as well as in the commercial environment.